This column, from the weekly opinion piece MATTER OF FACT, first appeared on BrooklynReporter.com, the Home Reporter and Spectator dated April 21, 2023
Hopefully, by the time this column is published, the overdue New York state budget has been finalized by the governor and legislature. Of all the provisions that have led to a protracted stalemate in getting this deal done, one broad area there seems to have been relative agreement on has been street safety measures, but nothing is guaranteed until the process is completed and a new budget goes into effect.
Governor Hochul and the state senate each included Sammy’s Law in their preliminary budgets. The bill is named in honor of Sammy Cohen-Eckstein, who was killed in 2013 on a Brooklyn street when a driver sped to beat a light that was about to change to red. Sammy’s mother, Amy Cohen, is one of the founders of Families For Safe Streets, which has worked tirelessly for years to advocate for streets that are safer for everyone on our roads.
Currently, by law, New York City does not have control over setting its own speed limits for its streets. That is entirely up to the state, but Sammy’s Law would change that and give the city the right to decide what the speed limits are on particular streets, as it should be. If Sammy’s Law, which is co-sponsored by Senator Gounardes, is included in the budget that passes, New York City will be able to decide if speed limits should be lower near senior centers, schools, and intersections that data have shown to be dangerous.
The data makes it undeniable that speed is a major factor in causing incidents of traffic violence, as well as leading to fatalities when they occur. Speeding is a major factor in four out of every five crashes that kill vehicle occupants. Pedestrians are four times more likely to be killed by a vehicle that strikes them at 30 MPH than one going 25 MPH. However, lowering the speed limit from 30 MPH to 25 MPH results in fatalities being 78 percent less likely in a crash. Furthermore, only about one in ten pedestrians hit by a vehicle traveling 20 MPH die.
Families For Safe Streets has led the way on pushing for the implementation of the SAFE Streets Act, which is a package of bills that would enable the state and local municipalities to make our streets and roads less deadly for all who use them. Certainly, pedestrians and cyclists are most vulnerable in vehicular collisions, but these measure would protect everyone, including motorists and their passengers. Across the state, over 100 groups have gotten behind the SAFE Streets Act, and it is imperative this comprehensive legislation package be enacted.
In addition to Sammy’s Law, the SAFE Streets Act includes bills to ensure that when street work takes place, that road safety improvements are considered and implemented during the restoration. It also contains a piece of legislation that to make vehicles safer by requiring currently available technology in new vehicles, such as intelligent speed assistance and other features. In addition, other bills would require drivers to safely pass cyclists at a minimum distance of three feet and create a victim bill of rights that would ensure crash victims and their loved ones have certain rights in legal proceedings.
“Crash victims and their families have unacceptable difficulty getting police reports, are denied the ability to attend and testify at DMV hearings, and struggle to obtain the support they need after a crash. The Crash Victim Bill of Rights will address this by providing rights for traffic crash victims in related legal proceedings similar to the federal Crime Victims’ Rights Act.”
Testimony from Amy Cohen, Co-Founder of Families for Safe Streets, to the NYS Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Transportation February, 15, 2022 during discussions for last year’s budget
Among the more-than-100 groups across the state who have thrown their weight behind the SAFE Streets Act, locally it is sponsored by B.R.A.K.E.S. (Bay Ridge Advocates Keeping Everyone Safe). B.R.A.K.E.S. was co-founded by Maureen Landers, a Bay Ridge resident who was struck by a car in 2009 and then dealt with her son being hit by a vehicle in 2018.
It seems our current situation in Southern Brooklyn is one in which everyone has been impacted by traffic violence, either to themselves or someone close to them. The news reports of tragedies on our streets recently have been frequent. We do not have to live like this. Though we can never eliminate all risk, there are common-sense steps we can enact to make our street safer for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists, and it is well past time we move forward and begin to enact these measures.
